Emre Ünal and Matthias Muhr successfully defend their doctoral theses

Both doctoral students defended their doctorates on 17 February in cooperation with the LMU Munich and graduated magna cum laude. The photo shows the two with their examiners Prof Dr Peter Kaul (H-BRS) and Prof Dr Thomas M. Klapötke (Munich).

Matthias Muhr on his doctoral project and his career plans:

"In my thesis, I designed a measuring device to determine the mechanical sensitivity of explosives. This was equipped with a sensor array. By analysing the data obtained using multivariate statistics, I was able to show that this setup can be used to carry out a rapid hazard assessment of unknown explosives.

In the near future, I will continue to work on the third-party funded project TEAMUP - what comes next is still open."

„I can only advise other doctoral students: Don't lose sight of your goal and set your frustration tolerance as high as possible.”

Dr. Matthias Muhr, PhD 2025 at the H-BRS, Department of Applied Natural Sciences

Emre Ünal on his doctoral project and his career plans:

"My work focussed on the targeted laser initiation of explosives. Various sensitive substances were irradiated by laser and coated with different materials. Through sensory monitoring, an attempt was made to identify powerful coating parameters with which it is possible to decompose the explosive without causing a complete explosion.

In the near future, I will endeavour to remain active at the university and get involved in the field of security research."

„I would like to advise other doctoral students not to be discouraged by setbacks in the laboratory and during measurements - once this part is done, a large part of the work is already done.”

Dr. Emre Ünal, PhD 2025 at the H-BRS, Department of Applied Natural Sciences